Carrier for plate-form building material



' S P 8, 1953 R. s. RAU ETAL CARRIER FOR PLATE-FORM B UILDING MATERIAL'2 sneet-sheei 1 Filed April 11, 1950 Sept. 8, RAU r v V I'CARRIER FORPLATE-FORM BUILDING MATERIAL 1 Filed April 11, 1950 2 Sheets-sheaf 2Patented Sept. 8, 1953 CARRIER FOR PLATE-FORM BUILDING A MATERIAL RobertS. Rau, Fanwood; and Winfield Rau; Chatham, N. J assignors to AtlanticBuilders Supply Corp., Chatham, N. J a corporation of New JerseyApplication April 11, 1950, Serial No. 155,186

The invention relates in general to article carriers and has particularreference to those carriers that are body-supported by persons servingasbearers.

The primary object of the invention is to provide a carrier that isespecially adapted for use by each one of a pair of bearers in carryingthe opposite ends of a load composed of long and wide plates of buildingmaterial such as wallb'oard, plate-glass, and the like.

Gypsum wall-board material is becoming increasingly popular in theconstruction of intenorw'ans of buildings but its use has met withserious transportation difficulties due to the large surface area andWeight of each board. For instance, a standard stock size of gypsumwallboard is four feet wide by twelve feet long, weighing about onehundred pounds. The facilities for transportation from factory throughdistributor to building site has been satisfactory, but, prior to thepresent invention, the relatively short carry at a building site fromthe delivery truck tothe' interior of a partially constructed buildinghas been attended with great hardship for the bearers and danger to thematerial being carried. At'a typical building site, thefollowing-conditions usually are'encountered: (1) the ground surroundingthe building is un-sodded, piled with dirt from the cellar excavation,and is too soft to permit the truck to approach nearer than the road,particularly in rainy weather; ('2) porches andoutside steps have notbeen constrficted soentrance must be by way of a board ramp usually laidat the opposite side of the building from the road and thus increasingthe distance of the carry, and (3) at least part of the material has tobe delivered to upstairs rooms. As compared to the distance from factoryto building site, the length of carry at the site is short but notsufficiently so to permit handcarrying with ease and safety.

- The reason for this is that large area wallboards can be grasped onlyat the edges, so cannot be hand-borne in this manner over the dis tancerequired without great discomfort and danger of 'being dropped throughexcessive finger fatigue, particularly on a windy day when the boardsbecome veritable sails that try to tear loose from the bearers grasp.These difiiculties have been aggravated by the practical necessity foruniting more than one board in flat-sided contact to form a load unit.The necessity resides in'the fact that two bearers are required to carryeven a single board, due to its unwieldiness, although its weight couldeasily be carried by one'man, so manpower must be conserved by 1 Claim.(Cl. 2245) 2 building up a unit load of maximum practicable weight.Incidentally, in order to facilitate handling'all along the line afterleaving the factory, the two or more component boards of a unit load arepackaged by binding the end edges with ad- I hesive tape extendinglengthwise thereof.

Specifically, the primary object of the invention has been accomplishedby providing a special carrier which includes a saddle upon which thebottom edge of the load may be rested, together with body-supportedsuspension harness, so constructed and arranged that the saddle willhang alongside the thigh of one of the bearers legswith the load leaningagainst the corresponding shoulder, in which position the load may behand-grasped above the center of gravity quite conveniently to preventoutward toppling.

A further object of the invention is to provide saddle suspensionharness that applies the Weight of the load to both shoulders of thebearer in as nearly evenly distributed a manner as is practicableconsidering the flank location of the saddle; To be more explicit, thesaddle suspension harness consists primarily of a pair ofshouldersupport'ed slings whose lower extremities converge upon ahip-level concentration member which bears the load of the saddlethrough the medium of secondary suspension means. Another object is toprovide simple and readily adjustable means for retaining the slings ofthe primary suspension means in secure shoulder engagement' even underconditions requiring the lowering of one shoulder beneath the level ofthe other, such as might otherwise cause the corresponding sling to slipoff the shoulder.

A still further object is the provision of a carrier of this kindwherein the saddle is capable of quick detachment from the secondarysuspension means of the harness while a load is being car'ried underconditions that make such action desirable. For example, the bearers maybe stopped by a temporary obstruction to their pro'gress. If the delaybecomes unendurable due to the weight of the load, it is possible tolower their carrier saddles to the ground by kneeling and then detachthe saddles from the suspension means. They thereby will be permitted toreassume erect positions and stand comfortably with their handssteadying the load until the obstruction has been removed. During thisinterval, the load will be resting evenly upon the grounded saddles andthus protected from being marred by gravel or being soiled by contactwith mud. When ready to resume the carry, the saddles are harness-engaed again inobvious manner. v

Other objects and advantages will become apparent as the followingspecific description is read in connection with the accompanyingdrawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a fragmentary perspective view showing the special carrier inuse by a bearer at the front end of a load of wall-board; Fig. 2 is aperspective view of the carrier alone, showing the retainer strap intightly adjusted position in solid lines and in loosened condition inbroken lines; and Fig. 3 is a large-scale fragmentary front elevation ofa load-engaged saddle when grounded and detached from the secondarysuspension means.

Fig. 4 is a large-scale perspective view of a modified form of saddle.

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary large-scale perspective view of a saddle and thesecondary suspension means therefor, showing an alternative arrangementof the hook and eye connection therebetween.

Fig. 6 is a transverse section of one of the shoulder pads.

Referring in detail to the drawings, in which like reference charactersdesignate corresponding parts in the several views, it will be observedthat my special carrier permits a load L of wall-board, or otherplate-form building material of large surface area to be carried bybearer B and a team-mate in the comfortable, well-balanced and secureside-borne manner illustrated in Fig. 1. V

For clearness in description of the relation of various parts of thecarrier to the associated parts of the bearers anatomy, the side of thebearer that is adjacent to the load being transported hereinafter willbe termed the near side and the side away from the load will be known asthe off side, regardless of whether the load is carried against theright side of the body or the left side. For example, in the carryingarrangement illustrated in Fig. 1, the bearers right shoulder ishis nearshoulder and his left shoulder is the off shoulder. It seems desirableto make this distinction in the terminology because,

under changing conditions of practical use and not due toright-handedness or left-handedness, it frequently becomes necessary tore-arrange the carriers of both bearers so that the load will be borneon one side to meet one controlling coni dition and on the opposite sideunder different circumstances. The changing conditions alluded to willbe explained more fully hereinafter when describing the operational useof the invention.

The load-engaging means of the carrier preferably takes the form of asaddle II! that is shoulder-supported in thigh flank position by a bodyharness II composed of cooperative primary and secondary suspensionmeans I2 and I2, respectively. Saddle It may be made of heavy sheetmetal in order to afford large area bearing surfaces for even loadcontact and also for comfortable contact with the bearers near leg. Ineither of the three illustrative embodiments, saddle II! has the samegeneral form and comprises a vertical side :plate I3, a load-seatingledge I4 projecting laterally outward from the base of side plate I3,and an attaching member at the upper edge of the side plate I3 forquick-release engagement with the secondary suspension means l2 ofharness II. Load-seating ledge I4 preferably has an upwardly inclinedretaining rim I5 to guide the load into its seated position and toprevent it from slipping off the ledge in transit. The width of ledge I4may be varied to suit the contemplated thickness of unit loads to beaccommodated.

The attaching member may take the form of a hook l6, as in Figs. 1 to 4,for detachable engagement with the ring-type attaching member ll ofsecondary suspension means I2, or the alternative form of an eye I8, asin Fig. 5, for engagement with a hook I9 provided on the secondarysuspension means in lieu of ring I1. Furthermore, the hook or eye forsaddle II] (whichever is used) may either be formed as an integral partof side plate I3, as shown in Figs. 1 to 3, or may be made separatelyfrom heavy wire and then aflixed to side plate E3 in any suitable manneras by welding. (Fig. 4.)

Primary suspension means I2 of harness II comprises a pair of mutuallycooperative slings 20 and 2! for hanging engagement with the near andoff shoulders, respectively, of the bearer. Both slings preferably areinthe form of looped straps that converge downwardly into substantialmeeting relation in a position alongside the bearers near hip, wherethey are threaded through a preferably ring-form concentration member22. For a purpose which will be described later, sling 28 should befree-running in its threaded engagement with concentration ring 22,whereas it is preferred to fixedly stitch the bottom loop of sling 2i,as at 23, to prevent linear displacement. 1

In order to permit adjustment of the effective lengths of slings 20 and2| of primary suspension means I2 to accommodate the same to bearers ofdifferent body measurements, the said slings should not be endlessloops, but, instead, should have overlapping end portions connected bybuckles 24 and 25, or other suitable fastening means. For convenience ofadjustment while the harness is being worn, the fastening means shouldbe located in front of the body. It is preferred to make concentrationmember 22 rectangular in shape to prevent binding and thus facilitatefree slipping of near sling 20 through the same when desired.

For comfort, shoulder pads 26 may be provided on slings 2B and 2! fordirect shoulder contact. Each of these shoulder pads should beexteriorly smooth to reduce the friction of sling adjustment,particularlyin the case of free-running sling 20, but should beinteriorly lined with sponge rubber or the like, as at 21 (Fig. 6),primarily for padding purposes but also to prevent shoulder slippage ofthe pads themselves. Keepers 28 should be provided exteriorly onshoulder pads 26 for retaining engagement with slings 20 and ZI, butshould be loosely fitting with respect to said slings so as not to ofiermaterial resistance to sliding adjustment of the latter.

The secondary suspension means I2 of harness I l is intended to permitheight adjustment of saddle I0, so preferably is in the form of a strap29 that is threaded through concentration member 22 and ring I! of thesaddle attaching means. An adjusting fastener 30 is provided on strap 29to permit the desired regulation of its effective length. By givingstrap 29 two or more turns, or convolutions, in its engagement withconcentration member 22 and ring I'I, so much friction will be producedbetween overlapping surfaces that a tongueless friction or clamping typefastener may be used. Such a fastener will permit large degree or minuteadjustments to be made with ease, even while a load is seated in thesaddle.

In some body postures during transportation of'a load, such as when theoff arm is raised in grasping and steadying the upper portion of theload, the near shoulder may become depressed below the level of the offshoulder. In order to prevent the near shoulder sling 20 from slippingoff the shoulder under such circumstances, retaining means has beenprovided. This means is in the form of a two-piece retainer strap 3|,whose outer ends are joined to the front and rear reaches of sling 20and which is adapted to encircle sling 2 I. The overlapping inner endportions of retainer strap 3| are adjustably united by fastening means,such as buckle 32, in order that its effective length may beaccommodated to the chest measurement of each individual bearer. Theouter ends of retainer strap 3| are joined to the respective reaches ofsling 20 preferably by sliding loops 33 which fit said strap with such adegree of snugness that the strap ends may be adjusted lengthwise on thesling without difficulty but will retain their set positions undernormal loadcarrying conditions, due to friction. The reason for thisfeature will appear as the following description of the operational useof the carrier progresses.

The manner in which the carrier is worn by a load bearer will bediscussed first, It must fit the individual properly in order to becomfortable and must support that bearers end of each load at the sameheight above the ground as the other end. When the two bearers of a teamdiffer greatly in stature, adjustments of their respective harnesses forsaddle height must be carefully coordinated. For that reason, it iscustomary to team together men of substantially equal stature and toavoid changes in team as signment.

As shown in Fig. 1, off sling 2! encompasses the bearers body, whereasnear sling 20 is looped around the near shoulder alone and hangsstraight down. Therefore, in donning the harness, after retainer strap3| has been parted by unfastening buckle 25, the harness is held infront of the body by grasping the shoulder pads of slings 20 and 2|respectively with the near and off hands and then is lifted until sling2| can be lowered over the head. When the shoulder pad of sling 2| hascome to rest upon the off shoulder, the off hand is changed intoengagement with the shoulder pad of sling 20 and a the near hand isfreed for insertion through sling 2| first and then sling 20. Theshoulder pad of sling 20 islowered onto the near shoulderand bothshoulder pads are adjusted into comfortable, well-balaneed positions onthe shoulders. Thereafter, slings 20 and 2 I are adjusted in length bymeans of buckles 24 and 25 to effect uniform distribution of weight onboth shoulders and to bring concentration member 22 into properhipbearing position, and stra 29 of secondary suspension means I2 isadjusted in effective length to locate ring I! at the same level as thecorresponding part of the other bearers harness and thereby insureproperly coordinated saddle suspension for both bearers of the team.Finally, retainer strap 31 is buckled up and adjusted in length so as toembrace the bearers chest with comfortable looseness while at the sametime tending to maintain the shoulder pads of both suspension slings inproper positions on the shoulders. The retainer strap may be in thesubstantially horizontal position represented in broken lines in Fig. 2at first. If, later on while a load is being carried, it is found thatthe near shoulder pad is slipping off the shoulder, all the bearer hastodo in order to tighten the embrace of retainer strap 3| and therebydraw the shoulder pad back into proper position is to grasp the frontreach of sling 2B, preferably'including loop 33 of retainer strap 3| inthe grasp, and

pull downward. This motion will cause the rear- Actual use of thecarrier at a building site must be preceded by an accurate though rapidsurvey of certain conditions that have an important bearing on themanner in which the harnesses will beworn, i. e. whether on the rightside or on the left side of the body. First, it must be determined justwhere the entire truck load of wallboard is to be deposited upon arrivalinside the building, Usually, the material is not delivered until thecarpenters are ready to apply the boards to the wall studding. At thattime, they will know how many unit loads are required for each room andjust what wall in that room is preferred as a leaning-rest for itsrespective pro portion of the total truck load. Of course, thecarpenters decision as to the leaning-rest wall may be influenced by arecommendation of the load bearers that will permit carrying of 'allroom-assigned parts of the truck load on the same side of the body so asto avoid harness rearrangement. For example, supposing that thecarpenters have designated a wall at the left side of the hall doorwayof a particular room as the leaning-rest for the wall-board to be usedtherein, it usually will be necessary to carry each 1 load on the leftside of the body so that it may: be carried straight in and along thedesignatedwall with little or no warping. This is import ant because itusually is impracticable to walkv around a room of ordinary size with a'twelve foot long load of wall-board, particularly when there aresawhorses or other obstructions, in

order to maneuver the load into a position parallel to the designatedwall and with the bearerson the side away therefrom.

day, the precise wind direction may be a con-v trolling factor.Naturally, if the carrying course from truck to building entrance iscross-wind, the bearers should carry their loads on the windward side oftheir bodies if possible. For that reason, the designation ofleaning-rest walls should conform, whenever possible, to the manner inwhich the loads should be carried to afford protection against theupsetting force of the Wind during the outdoors leg of the carry. Ininstances wherein the inside arrangements are inconsistent with the winddirection factor and cannot be modified, particularly when the windvelocity is very high, it may become necessary to reverse the carrierstwice for each load, 1. e. before commencing the outdoors leg to get theload into the wind and then inside the building entrance so as toarrange for appropriate room entrance in relation to the location of thedesignated leaning-rest wall. In this latter contingency, a couple ofblocks of wood, such as 2" x 4" scraps, should be laid on the floor justinsidethe entrance doorway, about ten feet apart and parallel to eachother as a temporary support for each load during harness change-over.In this instance, the bottom edge of the load is placed in directcontact with the Supporting blocks, so that the carrier saddles will befree for lateral disengagement from the load, in which movement theseating ledges thereof may be withdrawn through the space between theload and the floor created by the interposed blocks.

It should be stated that supporting blocks are laid in similar manner onthe floor of each room in abutting relation to the designatedleaningrest wall, so as to facilitate unloading.

Loading of the carriers for transportation of a wall-board unit load inthe manner depicted in Fig. 1 also is a two-man job, so the team of twobearers is sufiicient for the truck haul from distribution warehouse tobuilding site and all handling upon arrival atthe latter.

The wall-board unit loads are loaded on the truck in lengthwiseextending arrangement, so the bearers slide each successive unit loadoff the truck and lower it into seated position on their carrier saddleswhile standing in tandem relation. Then, the leading bearer grasps thefront edge of the load with his off hand as high as practicable withoutcausing his arm to obstruct forward vision. Under some circumstances, aswhen the wind velocity is high, he may also extend his near handforwardly between the load and his body in order to grasp the front edgeof the load just above the saddle. When the oil hand alone is activelyused for load grasping,

it is customary to allow the near arm to dangle idly behind the nearhip. The trailing bearer either grasps the rear edge of the load withhis near hand, or hooks his corresponding elbow around said edge. Byusing the elbow-hook methocLthe trailing bearer, as well as the leader,is enabled to engage the load above the center of gravity with his hand,whereby any tendency of the load to topple side-ways may be counteractedeffectively. By having a choice of loadsteadying methods, the trailingbearer may change methods in transit and thereby obtain relief from thestrain of prolonged holding in one position of hand or arm, and, he isentitled to this relief because he is subjected to greater muscularstrain than the leader when climbing stairs in the building.

Since it is becoming the practice to increase the size of the largestwall-boards and to add to the number that are bound together in eachunit load, the need for a practical carrier is more urgent than ever,

Having thus described the invention, we claim:

A shoulder-suspended carrier for plate-form building material adapted tobe used by one of a pair of bearers to support one end of a heavy loadin an upright plane leaning against the near side of the bearers bodieswith the bottom edge of the load substantially knee-high, whereby eachbearer will have hands free for grasping the end and top edges of theload to steady the same, said carrier comprising: a body harnessincluding a pair of mutually cooperative primary suspension slings ofloop form, one of said slings being adapted to embrace and hang directlydownward from the bearers near shoulder and the other sling beingadapted to embrace the bearers off shoulder and body and to extenddiagonally across the body to a point of convergence with thefirst-mentioned sling alongside the near hip flank; a concentrationmember of ring form fixedly connected to and supported by said diagonalofi shoulder suspension sling at the point of convergence of both slingsand having said near shoulder suspension sling threaded therethrough forfree sliding adjustment; a retainer strap to prevent said near shouldersuspension sling from slipping oif the shoulder, said retainer straphaving its opposite ends engaged respectively with the front and rearreaches of said near shoulder suspension sling and being adapted toextend around the off side of the bearers body, whereby the retainerstrap may be tightened and loosened in its body embracing grip bylengthwise manual adjustment of said near shoulder suspension slingthrough the con centration ring; and load-engaging means supported bythe concentration member.

ROBERT S. RAU. WINFIEL'D RAU.

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